A light-inhibiting ventilating device

ABSTRACT

A light-inhibiting device includes a plurality of similar elongated laminations having parallel margins and a parallel peak offset from the margins to allow passage of air between laminations but to exclude light, with extensions extending between laminations to removably space the laminations within a rectangular housing.

United States Patent 1 1 I l l lnventor Hendrik Johannes Antonius Nijhuis Aalst, Netherlands App]. No. 864,301

Filed Oct. 3, 1969 Patented Dec. 21, 1971 Assignee Tiger Plastics N.V. Industrieterrein Geldrop, Netherlands Priority Sept. 12, 1969 Netherlands 6913893 LIGHT-INHIBITING VENTILATING DEVICE 11 Claims, 15 Drawing Figs.

U.S.Cl 98/121 Int. Cl F241 13/08 Field of Search 98/40, 99.8, 121; 240/47 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,323,978 12/1919 Gebhardt 98/121 X 2,373,416 4/1945 Renton 98/99.8 X 3,217,631 11/1965 Thompson etal 98/121 3,248,837 5/1966 Newell etal..... 98/121 R FOREIGN PATENTS 542,1 17 12/1941 Great Britain 544,204 4/1942 Great Britain 98/121 Primary Examiner-Meyer Perlin Assistant Examiner-W. C. Anderson ABSTRACT: A light-inhibiting device includes a plurality of similar elongated laminations having parallel margins and a parallel peak offset from the margins to allow passage of air between laminations but to exclude light, with extensions extending between laminations to removably space the laminations within a rectangular housing.

PATENTED Buzz] 191:

SHEET 2 BF 5 LIGHT-INHIBITING VENTILATING DEVICE The invention relates to a light sluice consisting of a housing having separate laminations which are shaped so that direct light passage through the light sluice is prevented.

Such a light sluice is known from US. Pat. No. 3,285,156. In this light sluice the separate laminations are arranged in holders fastened to the housing.

A disadvantage involved in the light sluice disclosed in the US. Pat. No. 3,285,156 is that mounting requires much time, while the whole light sluice, also on account of the separate fastening of each of the laminations, comprises many parts. A further disadvantage of such a light sluice resides in that it can be cleaned only with great difficulty. It is with this kind of light sluices that soiling occurs soon, since they serve as a ventilation aperture and the resistance increases rapidly with increasing soiling of the lamination and of the housing. This means that either an excessive capacity of blowers has to be provided or the system will frequently be out of operation, since cleaning is high time consuming.

Such light sluices with fixed laminations are known inter alia from British Pat. Specification 542,117. Obviously, the aforesaid disadvantages apply to an even higher extent to such a construction, since cleaning is then very difficult, if not impossible. This means that the efficiency of the ventilation system decreases in accordance with increasing soiling. From US Pat. No. 3,217,631 a construction is known suitable for such ventilation systems, but also in this case in practice the laminations cannot be removed because the assembly is enclosed in a door frame or the like.

The present invention has for its object to obviate the existing disadvantages and is characterized in that the laminations can be fastened to each other so as to be detachable in a manner such that a lamination set thus formed can be arranged in a box-shaped housing and may be removed at will.

This means that the laminations can be removed from the housing as a complete assembly, whereas the laminations canbe readily removed from each other. Therefore, both the laminations and the housing can be cleaned in a simple manner and mounting as well as dismounting require only a short time.

The invention is furthermore characterized in that the V- shaped or corrugated lamination plates are provided at a peak or a valley with one or more extensions which are adapted to cooperate with corresponding extensions of a further lamination.

A further feature of the present invention resides in that a lamination comprises one or more hollow protuberances, the end of which is provided with a thickened part which can snap into the hollow part of the protuberance of a further lamination.

A further feature of the present invention, which intends to provide a more stable construction after the whole lamination set is arranged in the housing or the box is that the end of the protuberance is located in the imaginary plane tangential to two peaks or two valleys of the lamination.

Particularly for obtaining relative support and a stiffer construction of the lamination assembly the invention is furthermore characterized in that a lamination is provided with one or more extensions for the relative support of the laminations. This effect may be enhanced by connecting a supporting extension with the aid ofa ridge with the connecting extension.

The housing is preferably shaped in the form of a box, the light inlet side being provided with a window which joins the box.

As a matter of course such a box may be composed of parts which are preferably adapted to snap one in the other.

A simple, but very appropriate solution consists in that the box is formed by two portions which can be interconnected with the aid of a so-called dovetail structure. Such parts taken separately are so slack that they can be readily stacked up so that for transport purposes they occupy little space, whereas after the parts are fastened to each other the box is sufficiently rigid, this rigidity being further improved after the frame is arranged in a groove provided for this purpose. Since the frame is, in general, flat, it does not need further division.

Also for saving space in transport the extensions may be made separately and be fastened to the laminations by a snap closure so that finally the same construction is obtained as in the embodiment in which the extensions are rigidly secured.

The foregoing will be described more fully with reference to a few embodiments.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a housing and a lamination set.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a lamination.

FIG. 3 shows partly a sectional view and partly an elevation taken on the line IIIIII in FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 shows a detail in a sectional view taken on the line IV-IV of FIG. 2.

FIGS. 5 to 13 show a few embodiments of lamination structures.

FIG. 14 is a perspective, diagrammatic view of a divided box and FIG. 15 shows a loose combination of extensions.

Referring to the Figures, reference numeral 1 designates the housing or box consisting of a lower wall 2, an upper wall 3 and two sidewalls 4, while in the construction shown in FIG. 1 a window 5 is provided, which is rigidly secured in this case and is integral with the housing 1.

Such a housing can accommodate a lamination set comprising laminations 6 so that a light sluice is formed.

The housing 1 can be arranged in a wall so that the wall joins the outer periphery of the housing in a light-tight manner and in this way a ventilation cylinder can be formed through which at will light can be allowed to enter when the whole lamination set is removed and such a ventilation opening can be closed in a light tight manner by means of said lamination set.

The window 5 serves for retaining light along the sidewalls as soon as the lamination set is arranged in the housing and for this purpose the rims 7 are provided. It is thus not required for such a lamination set to be clamped tight in the housing and there may be such a tolerance that the assembly can be readily mounted and dismounted.

For preventing light from passing on the bottom side and the upper side, ridges 8 and 9 are provided on the window 5, the ridge 8 having a small height but the ridge 9 usually exceeding the ridge 8 in size so that viewed in a direction of height it is not necessary for such a lamination set to be clamped tight in the housing, for which reason adequate clearance may be present also in a direction of height, whereas the assembly is nevertheless light-tight.

In the case of divided construction of the housing 1 the window 5 will preferably be arranged in a groove designated by 10 in FIG. 14. Such a groove has a given width but this need not be objectionable, since the outer dimensions of a lamination set may be chosen so that it can nevertheless be mounted readily.

The divided housing of FIG. 14 consists in this case of only two portions, each having a sidewall 41, a bottom wall 2' and an upper wall 3'. The upper and lower walls are interconnected by means of dovetails l1 and since such a housing will be arranged in a wall after the window 5 has been arranged in place, such a divided housing has adequate rigidity after being mounted, while such a housing in a divided state has the great advantage that it requires less space for storage and transport.

Referring to FIGS. 2, 3 and 41, reference numeral 6 designates a lamination which has an extension 12 on the sides at the peaks.

Such extensions have a cavity 13 in which a recess 1141 is provided which is adapted to cooperate with a thickened part 15 and in this way any number of laminations can be interconnected. The length of the extension 12 is chosen so that the lower side of the thickened part 15 is located in the imaginary plane passing through the ends 16 and the valley 17 and in this way the extensions 15 of the lowermost lamination contribute to a stable accommodation of the whole lamination set in the housing.

In order to improve the rigid connection between the laminations, extensions 18 may be provided, preferably near the extensions 12 and the extensions 18 are shaped in a form such and extend over such a distance that in the fastened state of two laminations the surfaces 19 are supported from the next following lamination 6. This will be apparent from FIG. 1.

The extensions 12 and 18 may be interconnected by means of a bridge 19 so that on the one hand a slight deformation is allowed when the laminations are mounted on each other and on the other hand a sufficient stress is left between the surfaces 19 and the lamination 6.

As a matter of course the invention is not restricted to the shape of the laminations shown in FIGS. 1 to 4; also the shapes shown in H08. 5 to 11 may be employed.

FIGS. 12 and 13 illustrate some further possible places for the arrangement of the extensions 20. It is of course optional to use one or more extensions on each lamination and in principle the extensions may be provided at any desired place.

The lamination structure of FIG. 13 has ends 16', one end being located in the plane going through the valleys and the other end being located in the plane going through the peaks.

FIG. shows a loose structure of the extensions 13 and 18, in which case an additional groove 20 is provided in the cavity 13. The recess 21 cooperates with the groove 22 of the lamination 6. The cavity 13' in the lamination 6 is so large that the ridge 15 can pass and can cooperate with the cavity 14.

Such a structure of the extensions 12 and 18 on the lamination 6 provides the advantage that in storage and transport the laminations occupy less space so that a complete light sluice can be transported in a compact form of minimum space.

1 claim:

1. A light-inhibiting device comprising a rectangular housing to support a plurality of similar elongated laminations extending in superposed parallel relationship between opposite walls of the housing, each of said laminations comprising a strip of material having opposed parallel longitudinal margins and a peak extending longitudinally in a line parallel to and between said opposed margins and in a plane offset from the plane of the margins to provide a light barrier while permitting the passage of air between adjacent laminations, each of said laminations being individually removable from said housing,

and means to removably position said plurality of laminations in said housing in said superposed spaced parallel relationship to prevent the passage of light while permitting the passage of air through the housing as a whole when the laminations are in place, said means to removably position the laminations in said spaced parallel relationship comprising at least one extension extending at right angles to and in the plane of the peak of a lamination, the extension of each lamination being adapted to engage with the extension of an adjacent lamination.

2. The invention as defined in claim 1, wherein said means to removably position the laminations also includes a bridge extending from one side of the peak of a lamination to abut against the other side of the peak of an adjacent lamination.

3. The invention as defined in claim 7, wherein said housing comprises at least two parts.

4. The invention as defined in claim I, wherein each of said extensions is provided at one end with a hollow bore, the other end of the extension being provided with a projecting portion to be received within the hollow bore of the adjacent exten- 5. The invention as defined in claim 4 wherein said projecting portion is provided with an annular ridge to coact with an annular recess in the hollow bore of an adjacent extension.

6. The invention as defined in claim 5, wherein the extension extends approximately from the plane of the peak to the plane of the opposed margins.

7. The invention as defined in claim 1, wherein said housing comprises a box-shaped frame.

8. The invention as defined in claim 7, wherein one face of said box-shaped frame includes a window opening.

9. The invention as defined in claim 8, wherein said window opening is received within the housing by means of a snap a The invention as defined in claim 8, wherein said window opening is provided with a marginal portion to cooperate with the endmost ones of the laminations.

11. The invention as defined in claim 10, wherein said extensions for spacing the laminations are secured thereto by means of snapjoints. 

1. A light-inhibiting device comprising a rectangular housing to support a plurality of similar elongated laminations extending in superposed parallel relationship between opposite walls of the housing, each of said laminations comprising a strip of material having opposed parallel longitudinal margins and a peak extending longitudinally in a line parallel to and between said opposed margins and in a plane offset from the plane of the margins to provide a light barrier while permitting the passage of air between adjacent laminations, each of said laminations being individually removable from said housing, and means to removably position said plurality of laminations in said housing in said superposed spaced parallel relationship to prevent the passage of light while permitting the passage of air through the housing as a whole when the laminations are in place, said means to removably position the laminations in said spaced parallel relationship comprising at least one extension extending at right angles to and in the plane of the peak of a lamination, the extension of each lamination being adapted to engage with the extension of an adjacent lamination.
 2. The invention as defined in claim 1, wherein said means to removably position the laminations also includes a bridge extending from one side of the peak of a lamination to abut against the other side of the peak of an adjacent lamination.
 3. The invention as defined in claim 7, wherein said housing comprises at least two parts.
 4. The invention as defined in claim 1, wherein each of said extensions is provided at one end with a hollow bore, the other end of the extension being provided with a projecting portion to be received within the hollow bore of the adjacent extension.
 5. The invention as defined in claim 4 wherein said projecting portion is provided with an annular ridge to coact with an annular recess in the hollow bore of an adjacent extension.
 6. The invention as defined in claim 5, wherein the extension extends approximately from the plane of the peak to the plane of the opposed margins.
 7. The invention as defined in claim 1, wherein said housing comprises a box-shaped frame.
 8. The invention as defined in claim 7, wherein one face of said box-shaped frame includes a window opening.
 9. The invention as defined in claim 8, wherein said window opening is received within the housing by means of a snap joint.
 10. The invention as defined in claim 8, wherein said window opening is provided with a marginal portion to cooperate with the endmost ones of the laminations.
 11. The invention as defined in claim 10, wherein said extensions for spacing the laminations are secured thereto by means of snap joints. 